Guide bites
Capt. Chuck Rogers (813-918-8356): Capt. Chuck says the cold front last week and the resulting cooler bay water changes the strategy for this week. Schools of scaled sardines have moved to deeper water, including under the Gandy Bridge, so live-bait netters may want to start there if the shallow grass flats are not productive. Trout don’t mind the temperature drop and they’ll be a good bet this week on grass flats in 4 to 6 feet of water. Jigs with soft-plastic tails can be very effective in these conditions and allow anglers to cover more water faster. Generally, the cooling has the fish fired up. Capt. Chuck took out some biologists from the University of Florida for a fishing or tagging operation in the bay just south of the St. Pete Pier, with 117 fish landed in three hours. It was a mix of grunts, mangrove snapper, red grouper, sheepshead and other bottom fish. A chum block was out, and it attracted a cobia, so anglers may want to keep an eye out for those, particularly around structure like channel markers and tripods. There have been a lot of dolphins in the bay in many places, so there may be times when some areas are going to be unproductive. Just keep moving if they show up. He hasn’t been offshore, but it’s time to look for kingfish just off the beaches along the Gulf.
Capt. George Hastick (727-525-1005): Capt. George reports the cooling last week will “shuffle the deck” a bit this week, but he plans to stick with what’s been working, which is a solid pattern of fishing docks for snook and reds. The strategy has been working well from John’s Pass up to the Gandy Bridge area on the Pinellas side of the bay. He’s been putting his anglers on reds from undersized to 25 inches using live shrimp or sardines, which also have been taking the snook. Most of the snook have ranged from 25 to 32 inches, though a 40-inch monster was lost when the hook straightened. Trout fishing on the grass flats should be good going into the weekend. Work grass beds in 4 to 6 feet of water with jigs and Sea Shad tails, but don’t overlook canals. Some trout have moved into residential canals that are 6 to 7 feet deep, which is typical when the season begins to change and water cools. More sheepshead are showing up every week and as we head into winter, they are going to be a go-to when cold water slows the bite for many other species. He hasn’t targeted them just yet, but when it’s time, live shrimp and fiddler crabs are the top baits for them. The kings and Spanish mackerel are just offshore of the Gulf beaches, according to fishing mates Capt. George knows.
Tackle shop roundup
Gandy Bait & Tackle (813-839-5551): Zack reports that anglers have been taking a mixed bag of mangrove snapper and sheepshead fishing structure, including bridge pilings and rocks using live shrimp. The sheepshead bite will only get better, and as it does it will push mangrove snapper out, something that already seems to be the case, as a lot of snapper catches have come from the edges of shipping channels, including the channel at the Gandy Bridge. Trout fishing is good on the shallow grass flats, with fish anywhere from 2 to 6 feet of water. Redfish action has been pretty good, with anglers doing best in the northern region of the bay from the Howard Frankland Bridge and Big Island area to the Courtney Campbell Causeway areas. Live shrimp or fresh cut bait is producing well. Snook remain on the outside and around canals and creeks, though we’re getting to a point when they will increasingly be found around the mouths and inside the rivers that open to the bay. Cobias are showing up in many parts of the bay and the annual mullet run appears to be underway, with big schools of fish showing up all over. Word has come in that kings have been hooked around the Skyway Bridge, though most of the action on them has been offshore in the Gulf.
Riviera Bait & Tackle (727-954-6365): Billy says fishing in the bay is good. The mullet run is on, and redfish have been following the schools around mangroves on high water from Riviera Bay out to around Fort De Soto. Cooler water means more sheepsheads have been showing up around any kind of structure. Trout are on the grass beds, with the best action along the edges where the grass meets shell or hard bottom. More trout are showing up in canals. Some of the fish being hooked are the large, winter “gators.” Live shrimp or jigs with soft-plastic tails are top baits. A couple of anglers landed black drum from Riviera Bay.